Reagan’s First News Conference

How refreshing it is to see a President:
• Not use a teleprompter
• Take questions from the Press
• Not ‘hand pick’ the questions
• Speak with conviction about America’s place in the free world
• Not be a narcissus

“Spending reductions, including a $31 billion cut in spending in 1981, close to 5% of the federal budget then, or the equivalent of about $175 billion in spending cuts for the year today. In constant dollars, nondefense discretionary spending declined by 14.4% from 1981 to 1982, and by 16.8% from 1981 to 1983. Moreover, in constant dollars, this nondefense discretionary spending never returned to its 1981 level for the rest of Reagan’s two terms! Even with the Reagan defense buildup, which won the Cold War without firing a shot, total federal spending declined from a high of 23.5% of GDP in 1983 to 21.3% in 1988 and 21.2% in 1989. That’s a real reduction in the size of government relative to the economy of 10%.”

Spending as a percent of GDP was the same at the end of Reagan’s term as it was at the beginning. It jumped in 1981 and 1982 because of the recession, then fell during the recovery. Remember, spending as a percent of GDP will rise if GDP falls.